Cynthia Lynn, who played Colonel Klink’s secretary Fraulein Helga on “Hogan’s Heroes” during the first season, died Monday in Los Angeles. She was 76 and had been suffering from hepatitis. She was among the last surviving cast members of the 1960s military comedy.
Born Zinta Valda Zimilis in Riga, Latvia, she last acted in 1975 in an episode of “Harry O.”
She also appeared in “Gidget Grows Up,” “Mission: Impossible,” “The Odd Couple,” “Love American Style” and “The Six Million Dollar Man.”
Before “Hogan’s Heroes,” she appeared on “Surfside 6” and “Dr. Kildare.” In 1964, she appeared in Marlon Brando starrer “Bedtime Story.”
After Marlon Brando died, her daughter Lisa came forward and said Brando was her father. She said her mother had met him on the set of “Bedtime Story.”
Lisa Brando posted on Facebook: “Just wanted to thank you all so much for all your prayers and support during this difficult time. My mother will be truly missed. All my love to you and all her loving fans. XOXO”
In 2002, Lynn’s life was chronicled in the book “Escape to Freedom: A Biography of Cynthia Lynn,” which told the story of her family’s journey from Latvia to Germany to the U.S. during and after WWII. It also told of her relationship with “Hogan’s Heroes” star Bob Crane, which was portrayed in the movie “Auto Focus.”
